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State Estate Tax Comparison

One estate, 13 jurisdictions: see state, federal and combined estate tax side by side.

About 1 minuteThis calculator last verified October 1, 2026

Federal exemption verified against IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32. All 13 jurisdictions with their own estate tax verified directly against statute text or Department of Revenue forms, and re-checked monthly. Each row links to its state calculator, which shows the confidence level. Full methodology.

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Total value of everything the decedent owned, before deductions.

How this comparison works

For each of the 12 states and D.C. with its own estate tax, DueMATH runs the same estate tax engine used by the per-state calculators on your gross estate. Federal tax is computed with the state tax deducted (IRC §2058), which is why the federal column varies by jurisdiction. Combined tax is state plus federal.

Assumptions: no itemized deductions, no taxable lifetime gifts, a date of death of 2026-09-01, and 2026 rules. Your inputs are processed in your browser; they are not sent to DueMATH servers or analytics.

Sources and verification

Federal exemption verified against IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32. All 13 jurisdictions with their own estate tax verified directly against statute text or Department of Revenue forms, and re-checked monthly. Each row links to its state calculator, which shows the confidence level.

Last verified:
October 1, 2026
Prepared by:
Andika Bayupati, DueMATH. Not reviewed by a licensed tax or legal professional.

See the full methodology page for how every calculator on this site is sourced and how confidence levels are assigned.

See the full state-by-state data: inheritance and estate tax by state, 2026

Limitations and disclaimer

DueMATH provides estimates for educational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Tax laws change frequently and every situation is different — confirm any number here with a licensed CPA, tax attorney, or your state's Department of Revenue before making a financial decision.

Frequently asked questions

Which states have their own estate tax?

Twelve states and Washington, D.C. levy a separate estate tax: Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. This comparison covers exactly those 13 jurisdictions. Every other state charges no state-level estate tax, so only federal estate tax can apply there. Maryland also has a separate inheritance tax, which this page does not include.

Why does the federal tax differ from one state to the next?

State estate tax is deductible when computing the federal taxable estate (IRC §2058), so a higher state bill lowers the federal bill for the same estate. That is why the federal column is a range rather than one number once an estate is above the federal exemption.

Does this tell me where to live or which state to die in?

No. It shows what the same estate would owe under each jurisdiction's current rules as modeled by DueMATH. Domicile, where real property sits, residency rules, and planning options are legal questions this page does not answer. Talk to an estate attorney before acting on any comparison.

What does the cliff flag mean?

New York's estate tax has a cliff: once the taxable estate exceeds 105% of the state exemption, the credit that shelters the exemption disappears and the whole estate is taxed. A row flagged cliff is above that line. Rows near the line can change sharply with small differences in value.

Why is Washington marked approximate?

The engine treats Washington's estate tax as date-sensitive within 2026, so the figure depends on the exact date of death. It is flagged as an approximation rather than presented with false precision; open the Washington calculator to refine it.